After Chennai Super Kings' six-wicket loss to Kolkata Knight Riders at MA Chidambaram Stadium on Sunday, skipper MS Dhoni said dew made a big difference in trying to defend 144/6. Chennai had a chance to seal their place in the Playoffs at home as Deepak Chahar took three wickets in Power-play.
But Nitish Rana and Rinku Singh had other ideas by stitching a 99-run partnership off 76 balls for the fourth wicket to take Kolkata home in a chase of 145 with nine balls to spare. "The minute we bowled the first ball in the second innings, we knew we needed 180. But there was no way we could have got 180 on that pitch. The dew made a big difference in the second innings. We can't really blame any of our bowlers."
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"Just that the conditions had a big impact on the game. Very happy with what Shivam has done, but important that he is not satisfied and keeps improving. Chahar swings the ball, he knows what fields to take, and he bowls accordingly," he said after the game ended.
While Rana was unbeaten on 57 off 44 balls, Rinku scored 54 off 43 balls as the duo also scored the distinction of stitching the highest-ever stand for the fourth wicket partnership against Chennai at Chepauk.
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Rinku Singh, who got the Player of the Match Award for being the aggressor to dominate Chennai's spinners, said the plan was to make the most out of bad deliveries.
The win also means that Kolkata is still alive in the race to Playoffs, while Chennai, still in second place, need a victory in their last league match against Delhi Capitals on May 20 to get a spot in the last four.
